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Voices from Afghanistan: What will the future bring?

2014 will be an important year for Afghanistan and the international community. Prior to the departure of foreign forces and a few weeks before the Presidential election, speakers from Afghanistan, USA and Denmark will review the current situation and outline what lies ahead.

9:30 Introduction by Nicolai Wammen, Minister for Defence, Government of Denmark (tbc)

9.45 Parwiz Kawa from Afganistan. Editor in Chief, Hasht e Subh Daily Newspaper: What are the results since 2001 and how is the political situation in the run-up to the Presidential election in April 2014?

10:15 Sonia Eqbal from Afghanistan. Chairwoman of Afghanistan 1400 andPartner and CEO of Pahna Group: With one of the world´s youngest populations - 65 percent are under 25 years old - the role of political youth movements will be crucial in a country where politics are still dominated by aging traditionalists. What will thefuture bring for the young and for women´s role in politics.

10.45 Break

11:15 Marco Vicenzino from USA. Founder and director of the Global Strategy Project (GSP) and former Deputy Executive Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies-US in Washington: Afghanistan and the Regional Context: Iran, India, Pakistan and China.

11.45 Lunch

12.45 Shafic Gawhari from Afghanistan. CEO of Moby Media Group and Commissioner of the Afghan Premier League: How do you build the strongest force of reconciliation and nation building? The world of football is a good place to start.

13.15 Break

13.45 Sten Rynning from Denmark. Professor, Head of Center, Department of Political Science and Public Management, Center for War Studies at University of Southern Denmark: The role of Denmark and other foreign countries are about to change. Whatwill be the most important elements of outside contribution in the years ahead?

14.15 Panel discussion and Q & A

15.30 Closing remarks

Please register your participation (event@udenrigs.dk or telephone 3314 8886) nolater than Monday 24 February. You may bring a guest, but please remember to putyour guest’s name on the registration.

A conference organized by the Danish Foreign Policy Society in cooperation with theAmerican Embassy in Copenhagen, Centre for Military Studies at CopenhagenUniversity, the Danish Atlantic Treaty Association, Hummel and the Royal DanishDefence College

About the speakers

Nicolai Wammen is Minister of Defence. He is a former Minister for European Affairs and mayor of Aarhus, the second largest city in Denmark. Her has also hold positions as vicepresident of the Social Democrats, chairman of the Board of the Port of Aarhus and member of the Board of Local Government Denmark (KL)

Parwiz Kawa is an Afghan poet, writer, journalist and currently Editor-in-Chief at Hasht e Subh Daily Newspaper, the largest and leading newspaper of Afghanistan, launched in 2007. In 2012, his newspaper was awarded the International Press Freedom Prize by Reporters without Borders. Mr. Kawa also holds the position of Chairman of the Board at the Organization for Integrated Development and Empowerment of Afghanistan. He is a member of Peace Watch Committee, a civil society initiative to ensure a justice-based peace in Afghanistan.

Sonia Eqbal is Chairwoman and co-founder of Afghanistan 1400 and the CEO and Partner of PAHNA Group, a communications and management consulting firm based in Kabul. Sonia has worked as Senior Project Manager for Harakat, Afghanistan Investment Climate Facility and before that as a Consultant for The World Bank from late 2008 to 2010, as well as working for Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission and the United States Institute of Peace.

Marco Vicenzino is the founder and director of the Global Strategy Project (GSP). He served as Deputy Executive Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies-US (IISS-US) in Washington, DC, and as Director of Latin American Studies, Membership and Outreach for the IISS. Mr. Vicenzino is a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Shafic Gawhari is the CEO of Moby, Afghanistan’s largest news and entertainment media outlet. A former U19 national football player, Shafic has been involved with the establishment of the Roshan Afghan Premier League. Having spent his formative years in Kabul, he moved to Germany in the 1980’s where he made his master and worked for several high profile development organisations. He moved back to Afghanistan in the early 2000’s where he worked for the German Agency for International Cooperation and became a commissioner for the Roshan Afghan Premier League.

Sten Rynning is Professor of Political Science at the University of Southern Denmark, Center for War Studies. He is the author of NATO Renewed: The Power and Purpose of Transatlantic Cooperation; Changing Military Doctrine: Presidents and Military Power in Fifth Republic France, 1958–2000; NATO in Afghanistan: The Liberal Disconnect.

Michael Ehrenreich is Executive Director of the Danish Foreign Policy Society. He has had a long career in Danish journalism as Political Correspondent in Parliament, Foreign Correspondent in London and Washington, Foreign and Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief for Berlingske and Co-Editor for Kristeligt Dagblad.